


Two of Us

by newbatgirl



Series: Two of Us [1]
Category: Smallville
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-09-29
Updated: 2010-09-29
Packaged: 2017-10-12 07:40:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/122524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/newbatgirl/pseuds/newbatgirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU.  As an homage to all the terrific time travel fics in this community, I'm trying my hand at my own, with a twist. A present-day Chloe and Oliver are pulled 23 years into their future to help avert a global disaster.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Chloe and Oliver are attracted to one another in this fic but do not have a non-relationship relationship going on. Title is from the Beatles song "Two of Us" which will feature later in the story. There are many versions of this song but my favorites are the original and the one Neil and Liam Finn did for the "I Am Sam" soundtrack. Can't go wrong with either of them. As with all of my stories, this is told in an alternating POV format, starting with Oliver.

**Prologue  
**  
 _Watchtower...afternoon...  
_  
Oliver walked to Chloe's workstation and was surprised to find it empty. Usually she was already there at this time of day, already mapping out the evening's strategy or working on some longer term research project. Of course, with the rest of the team on a plane for Germany for a mission, she was entitled to a break. Still, she would still be here for him, right? Conflicts with his QI schedule didn't allow him to join the rest of the team on this mission but he still intended on going out that night as Green Arrow.

“Chlo?” he called out. “Chloe? You here?”

“Upstairs! Be down in a second.”

Oliver nodded in relief. “Did the guys get off alright?” He called up the stairs.

“Took off about a half hour ago. Victor's going to text me when they land and then call-in when they're set up. Should be about 24 to 36 hours from now.”

“Right.” Oliver replied, loosening his tie. He checked the time. He had a few hours before he needed to suit up for the night. Maybe he and Chloe could grab dinner out before nightfall. It would be a nice change from takeout pizza and Chinese eaten while poring over strategic plans and city maps. 

“Are you still upset that you couldn't go with them?” Chloe's voice drifted closer as she moved around upstairs.

Oliver skimmed through the emails on his Blackberry as he listened to her, finding nothing urgent, he slid it back into its holster and raising his eyes, caught sight of Chloe's shapely bare legs coming down the stairs. He raised his eyes and took in the whole package. The whole beautiful package. 

She was wearing a short white sleeveless sundress, made out of some kind of lacy eyelet material. The skirt was slightly fuller than she typically wore and the top of the dress had a corset design that showed off her small waist and...other assets to perfect advantage. Her wavy blond hair framed her face in a slightly more tousled style than she typically wore around the Watchtower.

Oliver's throat went dry. She was still moving and he watched her body move in the dress before he realized that she was actually speaking to him.

“Oliver? Did you hear what I said?”

“Uh...no, what did you say?”

“I asked if you were upset that you couldn't go to Germany with the guys?”

“No, I'm not upset about that.” 

“That's a relief, it's probably a good thing, you know. I think it's about time for Victor to be in charge on a mission...” she turned to grab a pale yellow sweater from where it hung on the bannister.

Oliver blinked. Chloe was talking about League business while walking about dressed like that? “Wh-what's with the dress, Tower?”

She looked at him, then down at her dress in alarm. “What's wrong with it?”

“Absolutely nothing. You look amazing. But what's the occasion?”

“I'm going out,” she said vaguely. “Have you seen my purse?”

Oliver felt his stomach tighten. “Out where?”

“Just out. I thought I left it in here. Are you sure you haven't seen it?”

Oliver took in the dress, her hair, the slightly heavier make-up... “You have a date!”

“It's not a date!” she protested, “It's just drinks...and maybe dinner.”

“Dinner and drinks aren't a date? Since when?”

“OK, so technically it's a date.” Chloe began moving from room to room, looking under papers, cushions, and other items. Presumably for the purse she had mentioned. Oliver followed, not bothering to help. 

“Who's the guy?”

“You could help me out here. It's the small tan one with the gold buckle.” 

“The guy, Sidekick. Who is he?”

A sigh. “Just a guy I met when I went to visit Lucy at MetU last week.”

“Just a guy?”

“OK technically, he's her history professor but he's an adjunct and the semester's almost over anyway.”

“You're dating Lucy's history professor?”

“Just drinks! And maybe dinner.” She looked behind the couch. “Where is it?”

“This guy have a name?” Oliver asked flatly.

“Aaron.”

“Aaron what?”

“Aaron Stephens,” she answered, her head still stuck behind the couch.

“Aaron Stephens,” he repeated, walking to her work station. He selected a database then grabbed the keyboard and began typing one handed. She hadn't said if it was Stephens with a 'v' or a 'ph' so he'd just search both.

She appeared in the doorway. “What are you doing?”

“Looking up your non-date.”

“You're trying to run a background check on my date?”

“Of course I am! You can't go out with someone we don't know anything about!”

“Thanks for the sentiment, Dad, but don't you think I did that myself already?”

Oh. He hadn't thought of that. Of course, she'd run a background check. She was Chloe.

“And? What did you find?”

Chloe grabbed the keyboard from him. "Nothing. He's 29, has a Ph.D in American History, likes running, and has a five-year old Labrador. He hasn't gotten anything worse than a parking ticket in the past five years and has a prescription for pollen allergies. That's it!”

Oliver swallowed. “What about his credit? Did you check his credit? And his family? Does he have a wife or something stashed somewhere...”

“Ughhhhh...what is the matter with you? I'm just going out for one night to have some fun. You're the one who keeps telling me that I should have some fun!”

He had meant fun with him! Dammit. He didn't want her to go out and meet someone else.

But he didn't say that out loud, instead he simply crossed his arms and leaned against her workstation. 

She put her hand on his shoulder. “Ollie? What's the matter?”

When he didn't answer, she pressed again. “Oliver?”

He felt like a kid. Throwing a tantrum because he didn't want to share what he considered his.

“I wish...” he turned to face her. “I wish that you would have told me that you were ready to start dating again. I've been waiting for you. I didn't want to rush you.”

Chloe's mouth opened, then closed again and she looked away.

“C'mon, Chloe, don't tell me you didn't know.” She had to have known. They both felt it.

“I thought it would be better for the team if we didn't,” she whispered. “It could make things really complicated. I like it here, Ollie. I don't want to have to leave if things didn't work out.”

“You wouldn't have to leave and neither would I. We could handle it.” he insisted.

Chloe looked doubtful and Oliver edged closer to her. “Sidekick...Chloe? Tell me what you're thinking.”

Chloe met his eyes for a long moment. “Ollie...I have to go.” she laid her hand on his forearm. “He's already waiting for me, I can't cancel now. I'll be back before you go out tonight and we'll talk then, OK?”

Oliver nodded, not agreeing at all. “Promise me?”

“I promise. We'll talk about this tonight.”

“OK. Tonight. Be careful.”

“I will. Now If I could just find my pur---” She stopped short and he looked up to see what had interrupted her. Quick as a flash, he grabbed her hand and pulled her behind him.

Standing in the middle of the room was a tall, muscular man. He we wore a black mask with horns at the top of the head. A long black cape swirled around him. He stepped closer and Oliver could see that the black suit he wore was more like thick armour molded to his body. His left hand was held in a clenched fist near his chest.

“Watchtower.” the man said in a deep voice, “You need to come with me.”

 **End Prologue.**


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One  
**  
 _Watchtower...afternoon...  
_  
“Watchtower.” the man said in a deep voice, “You need to come with me.”

“Who are you? How did you get in here?” she asked the intruder from her spot behind Oliver, trying to ignore how fast her heart was beating. They hadn't heard the doors open. She had perimeter alarms on the doors, windows, and every other possible entry into the Clocktower. How had this...creature gotten in? 

Oliver was slowly moving them back away from the intruder, and she noted that he was doing so at an angle, inching them towards the door so they could make a run for it, or at least, so he could reach his Green Arrow gear.

“I'm not here to hurt either of you, but I need Watchtower to come with me now. It's urgent.”

“Over my dead body,” Oliver growled. “She's not going anywhere.”

“Green Arrow, we don't have time for this!” the intruder barked and Chloe's eyes widened. Whoever this man was, he knew too much.

“Who are you?” Chloe asked again.

“Don't worry about that now, Sidekick.” Oliver said to her though his teeth.

“I'm from the Justice League. We need your help, Watchtower.”

“You're not in the League, believe me, I'd know.” Oliver shot back. 

“Not now, in your time, but in the future, your future. I need Watchtower to help us. I can explain everything, but she needs to come with me now.”

“She's not going anywhere with you!” 

They were now close to the door and Oliver gave Chloe a shove. “Run!” She hesitated only for a moment then ran through the door. She looked back in time to see Oliver lunge at the man in black, knocking him off his feet. Instead of fighting, the man in black clenched his fist again and vanished before their eyes. 

“Where---?” Chloe began.

Oliver got to his feet and grabbed her hand. “No time! C'mon, I've got to get to my gear!” He raced up the stairs, tugging her behind him, to reach the room where he stowed his Green Arrow gear and costumes. They'd just cleared the top step when the caped man appeared again, effectively blocking their path.

“No arrows for this, Oliver. You need to listen.” the man said. “Oh Hell, we don't have time!” he reached under his cape and something brightly lit emerged and he flicked his wrist in their direction.

She and Oliver were suddenly loosely encased in some kind of net, except it was make of light. The energy coming off it made it difficult but not impossible to move. When Chloe tried to touch it, a charge traveled painfully through her fingers and she had to draw back. Oliver pulled her to towards him, wrapping his arms around her to minimize her contact with the lighted bands.

“What the Hell are you doing?” he shouted at the caped man. 

“Believe me, Oliver, I'd prefer not to put you two through this. I'd actually prefer to leave you behind but you're a pain in the ass, so you're coming too. They warned me that you wouldn't let her go without a fight. And someday you're going to make me pay for using the energy net on you.” He raised his fist again and stepped closer to them. Chloe was watching his hand again and she could have sworn she saw the flash of something metal in it. “Hang on.” he commanded.

And she was nearly blinded by the explosion of light that followed.

*****  
 _2033...Justice League Headquarters...Lower Lunar Orbit...  
_  
The bright light faded and Oliver blinked until his eyes adjusted to the new light. He kept his arms around Chloe not sure what to expect. He looked around and swallowed hard. They weren't in the Clocktower anymore, that was for sure. He didn't know how but this crazy man in the the black cape had transported them someplace. 

It was a large, nearly empty, bright and almost pure white room. He spotted an enormous computer console taking up one whole wall of the room with multiple workstations, screens of various sizes, with several chairs lined up in front of it. The man in the black cape stepped towards it, leaving them in the middle of the room. The lighted net was still around them so they could not follow. Oliver looked down at Chloe. “Are you OK?” She nodded and tightened her grip on his waist. “Where are we?” she asked. 

“You're at the Justice League headquarters.” the man in black replied. 

“You're lying.” Chloe shot back.

“No, I'm not. This is the operational headquarters of the Justice League, twenty-three years into your future. Both of your futures.”

“And who are you?” Oliver asked, although he suspected he knew the answer. He'd heard rumors about a vigilante dressed like this man working in Gotham for some time now but he'd never seen any photos of him. 

“Batman.” he responded. “I'm not in the League in your time but I'm here now. Along with many more members than you have in your time. And we've got a lot to do if we're going to save the League. Excuse me, I need to contact some of the other members to let them know I've secured Watchtower. I'll explain when I'm done.”

Oliver ran his free hand down his face, while keeping an arm around Chloe. Twenty-three years?

They both watched as Batman stepped over to the console wall and began pressing buttons. “Diana, J'onn. I've secured Watchtower. What's your ETA?”

 _“Not sure...There's some kind of blockade over North American airspace...We'll try to leave Earth orbit by some other way...He's in pretty bad shape, Batman...”_  a female voice said over the comm.

“Get him here as fast as you can.”

 _“What about the kids?”_  the woman called Diana asked.

“They're here. Batman out.”

Oliver looked down at Chloe as they listened in on this conversation. Who was Diana? Was this their J'onn? What did she mean by North American airspace? Earth orbit? Who was 'he' and who were these kids?

The door to the room burst open and they turned toward the noise.

The voice of the new visitor was familiar but everything else made them gasp in surprise.

“Batman, you used an energy net on Green Arrow and Watchtower? They're going to kick your ass!” AC's voice rang out. He came closer and Oliver gaped at him. It  _sounded_ like AC and it  _looked_ like AC, only he was older...with longer hair and slightly wider build. His Aquaman gear, if that's what he was wearing, was different. The fabric was shinier and one sleeve extended down over his left hand, covering it completely. There were lines around his eyes and mouth and gray hair at his temples.

“AC?” he asked.

“Of course it's me. Little older than you probably remember.” AC turned to Batman, who had come up to stand beside him. “Told you you'd have to bring them both. Boss would never let you take Watchtower without a fight. That why you had to use the net on them?”

Batman's silence was apparently response enough.

AC turned to study them more closely. “Man, look at you guys. You look like kids!”

Oliver exchanged a glance with Chloe but said nothing. This was too much to take.

“You aren't buying this, are you?” AC observed. “I don't blame you. If someone dragged my ass into the future...but this is important. We need Chloe to use her powers.”

“On who?” Chloe asked.

The door opened again and another familiar voice rang out. “Batman, the system says we've got them on board. Is that true--- Oh, Holy---!” Victor rushed forward, stopping just short of the energy net. “You got them! This time travel thing shorts my chips but you really got them.”

“Victor?” Chloe said breathlessly. It looked like Victor, plus about twenty years and a gray-flecked goatee. 

“Who else would it be, Tower? Wow, you look amazing. You both look like when we first started.” Victor turned to Batman. “When did you grab them from anyway?”

“2010. From the Watchtower.” Batman replied.

“Shoot, the Watchtower. Miss that place. Hey, why did you put them in an energy net?”

“Boss apparently didn't come quietly,” AC explained and Victor nodded in understanding. “Right, but they're here now. Can't we let them out?”

Batman eyed Oliver. “You think they're not going to try to break out of here?”

“Right. Well, can't we at least make it bigger while we explain what's going on? Once they know what's going on, they'll help us. They have to.”

Batman nodded and Victor raised a hand and waved at them. The energy net expanded to six feet in diameter but Oliver didn't let go of Chloe and she didn't loosen her grip on him.

Victor seemed to notice this. “Some things never change,” he muttered. 

Voices from outside the room caught all of their attention and two more people joined the group. 

“Batman, the kids are getting kind of antsy and I don't know what to tell them---” the familiar female voice said.

It was Chloe's turn to gasp as an older Dinah and Bart walked into the room.

Dinah's hair, or perhaps her wig, was shorter. In place of her fishnets, she wore leather pants and form-fitting leather duster over a fuller figure. Bart however, looked slightly thinner, with a thin scar running across his chin. 

They both faltered in their strides at the sight of Oliver and Chloe in the energy net.

“Wow,” Dinah said, walking up to stand next to AC. “This is so weird.”

“Imagine it from our side.” Chloe told the other woman.

“Right. Sorry.”

“”Whoa, look at you guys!. It's Chloe-licious all over again.” Bart said and Victor shook his head. “Man, Ollie told you that you weren't allowed to call her that anymore. Not after---” He stopped abruptly and looked at Oliver and Chloe sharply, particularly their joined hands. “Shit, Bats, you said 2010?”

“Yes. April. It was the only time period that Watchtower could be missing for over 24 hours without your younger selves coming to look for her.”

AC nodded and turned to Oliver. “Right, the Germany mission. You couldn't come.”

Little by little, as more information started to come out, Oliver felt his doubts slipping away. These people..they were simply too much like their friends and they knew too much for all of this to be an elaborate hoax.

Victor was watching him “Ollie? You're starting to believe us, aren't you?”

Chloe looked up at him and he could see that she her doubts were falling away as well.

“Maybe if you tell us what you need from Chloe... Things might make more sense.”

The others exchanged glances and then all eyes went to Batman. 

“Bats, how about you take this one?” Victor suggested. “But remember, you grabbed them from 2010. There's a whole lot they don't know. You're seriously going to freak them out if you tell them too much. Plus there's the whole messing with history thing.”

“Whatever I don't tell them, they're eventually going to figure out,” Batman shot back pointedly. “She can't do it alone, you know.” 

“Yeah, well. Baby steps, man, baby steps.”

“In a manner of speaking.” said AC with a grin, before Dinah elbowed him.

“Quit it,” she whispered.

Chloe looked suspicious. “What are you guys talking about?”

Batman cleared his throat. “Never mind that! The bottom line is. we need you to heal Su- to heal Clark. He's been blasted with a concentrated force of Kryptonite, what you know as greenK. Two other Justice League team members are bringing him here. If you don't heal him, he'll die.”

“Why can't the Chloe from your time do it?” Oliver asked, then his eyes widened. “She's alive, isn't she?”

“Relax, Arrow. You're both alive in our time but the person who blasted Clark knows about Chloe's abilities and abducted both of you beforehand as a means of ensuring that Clark would die.”

“Who!!! Who took her? Us? Them. Whatever!”

Batman hesitated. “President Luthor.”

*****

For the first time since they had been in this strange place, Oliver let go of Chloe.

“President of what?” he barked out.

“The United States.” Batman replied.

Chloe could feel the waves of anger rising in Oliver and she grabbed his arm in an attempt to calm him down.

“What kind of Justice League lets Lex Luthor become President of the United States???!!!” he bellowed.

“Believe me, we did everything we could do to stop it but he has more money and more influence than you can imagine now. He only took office a few days ago and we already have our people in the Senate working to reverse it, but in the meantime, he's trying to use the full-force of the American military to eliminate the Justice League. We're clearly still a threat to him.” Batman explained. 

Chloe looked up at Oliver and watched the muscles tighten in his jaw. She pulled on his arm and he looked down at her. She willed him to calm down with a pleadingly look and he acquiesced, putting his arm around her waist again.

“How does killing Clark eliminate the Justice League? You said there were many more members now.” Chloe asked, picking up on what Batman had said.

“You're right, it doesn't. But it certainly weakens our defenses here. If Clark dies, and Luthor convinces the military to turn its short range space missiles towards us ...without Clark to help deflect them, our shields can hold out for a week, maybe two at best. We'll need to abandon this base and split up. And that weakens us.”

Chloe blinked and looked around the room. “Short range space missiles? Where exactly are we?”

Batman and Victor exchanged looks. Batman nodded. Victor waved his arm again and the energy net vanished. Batman indicated that they should follow him, which then did, staying close to each other. They reached the far wall across from the console wall and Batman pressed a hidden button. The wall panel rose slowly, revealing a window. 

“Oh God...” Chloe heard herself saying as the window revealed the deep night of space outside, moonscape several hundred miles below, and the bright blue of planet Earth beyond.

“Justice League headquarters is located in lower Lunar orbit. Oliver and I thought this was the safest place for the team given the jurisdictional issues we kept running into.” Batman explained. 

Chloe nodded and turned to Oliver. “Sounds like your brain still works this same way. Always trying to color outside the lines.”

He smiled faintly at her and Bart snorted behind them. “You have no idea.”

“How do you guys even get up here from Earth?” she asked.

“Teleporters, for the most part.” Victor replied. “Unfortunately, Luthor found and destroyed Clark's teleporter so they're taking the long way.”

Chloe felt utterly drained and she leaned against Oliver for support. There was so much to take in. 

Dinah spoke up. “Batman, how long before Diana and J'onn get here?”

“It's going a be a while. They running into some blockades. I was going to try to raise Green Lantern and and Hawkman to help punch a hole through for them.”

Dinah nodded. “Good idea, in the meantime, can we find some place for these two? They look like they could use a rest, at least for a while? Chloe's not going to be able to help us if she can barely stand.”

Batman nodded. “You're right. Take them down. Level 2---”

Bart interrupted sharply. “No! Not a good idea! Level 2 is sorta  _ocupado_ at the moment.”

Chloe looked around as the others nodded in understanding. “Right,” Batman said. “Level 4. there are guest quarters there.”

“There's something you're not telling us.” she said. “Something important.”

Victor sighed. “Watchtower, there's a whole lot we're not telling you guys. Believe me, it's better this way.”

A few minutes later, they were alone in a smaller room that looked like an upscale, ultra modern hotel room, with a large bed, dresser, sitting area, and bathroom. A small window in wall offered a similar view of the incredible space scene they'd glimpsed from the control room. 

Chloe sighed heavily as she sat down on the bed.

Oliver pulled off his suit jacket, tossed it on a nearby chair and knelt in front for her. “Are you OK?” he asked.

“It's all relative, right?” she said with a weary smile. “We've been kidnapped into the future, but at least it's by our friends?” Oliver laughed and slid up on the bed next to her. He pulled her to his side and tucked her head under his chin. “Lex is still trying to kill us. At least there's that.”

“I guess I'm going to miss my date.” Chloe said thoughtfully.

“And we've found the silver lining,” Oliver quipped and dodged her elbow.

“What do you think they're not telling us?”

“Not sure. How much worse could it be? We've been kidnapped. Lex is trying to the blow the Justice League out of the sky and he has access to all the power of the US military to do it. Not sure what else we could add to this mix.”

“Me either,” Chloe agreed, twisting her neck from side to side in an effort to relieve the tension. Seconds later she felt Oliver's hands on her neck and he began to work out the knots for her. “Here, let me.”

She was too tired to object and besides, it felt so good. “Ummmm...thanks. I didn't realize how much I needed that.”

“You should try to get some rest. If you're going to need to use your powers....Um...are you going to do this?”

Chloe turned to look at him, “Of course I am.”

Oliver looked relieved. “I thought you would but I wanted to make sure.” He held her gaze for a long moment then resumed his neck massage. “So, if you're going to to do this, you should probably get some rest.”

“I'll try. There's just so much in my brain right now.”

“I know.”

“We're on a space station.”

“Yeah.”

“Twenty years into our future.”

“Yeah.”

Chloe stopped talking and let Oliver work on her neck for while.

“Sidekick?”

“Yeah?”

“Does this count as a date?”

She laughed. “Probably the weirdest first date in history.”

 **End Chapter.**


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two  
**  
 _2033...Justice League Headquarters...Lower Lunar Orbit...  
_  
The knocking on the door jarred Oliver from his light doze. He looked down at Chloe curled up against his chest and regretted that he'd need to disturb her to answer it. He slid his body carefully from underneath hers and by some miracle, she did not wake up.

He opened the door to reveal a sheepish looking Victor.

“Sorry to disturb you but we got a message from J'onn. He and Diana should have Clark here within the hour. You guys should come up to the Control Room.”

Oliver looked behind him at the sleeping figure on the bed. “Right. Give us a minute.”

“I'll wait out here.” Victor added, stealing a glance at Chloe then shifting his gaze to Oliver. 

“What?” Oliver asked when he noticed the other man's scrutiny. 

“Nothing...It's just, it's been a long time since I've seen you guys like this. It brings back a lot of memories.”

Oliver mulled his words. “Vic, we're all still friends in this time right? We don't just work on League and go our separate ways?”

Victor smiled a knowing smile. “We're not just friends, man. We're all family. The League is bigger now, but we're a family. You'll see. I'll be out here.” Victor puled the door shut behind him. 

Family. Seemed like an odd way to describe a group of vigilante heroes but then he remembered how Chloe looked after the boys in their own time and how few real blood ties each of them had when they started, it made sense.

Something to think about later, though. Right now he needed to wake up Chloe. He leaned over the bed and pushed the wavy blond strands from her face. “Sidekick, time to wake up. Chlo?”

She opened her eyes, blinked a few times then looked around the room.

He read her thoughts as easily as if a word balloon had appeared over her head. “No, it wasn't a dream.”

She sat up in bed, the movement straining the fabric of the white sundress that had caused so much discussion between them earlier. “I know, but just for a second...”

“I know.”

“You think they're going to send us back to our time after I heal Clark?”

“I see no reason why they wouldn't. They seem pretty concerned with not telling us things that might affect what we say or do when we go back.”

“Yeah, I suppose so.”

“Come on. Victor said they should have Clark here within the hour. Whatever else they need to tell us, they better do it now.”

Batman, Dinah, Bart, AC, were waiting for them in the Control Room when they returned. 

Batman stepped forward and placed a gloved hand on Chloe's shoulder. Oliver tried and failed to stop his body from reacting but he tightened his hold on Chloe's waist the second it happened. If Batman noticed he didn't comment. 

“Clark will be here soon. We're going to bring him to the medical bay. We have somewhere for you there as well...for after.”

“Any idea how long she'll be out?” Oliver asked. “How badly is Clark hurt?”

“Pretty bad. That's the other thing you should know. Chloe won't be able to heal him on her own. Lex has been trying to exceed her healing power. We have two other healers here to help her.”

“Why couldn't you just use them?” Chloe asked before Oliver could.

“They're not as strong as you are. In fact, they're each only half as strong as you are. Working together with you, we think you'll be able to save him. All three of you will be out for a while but from what we've learned about your healing and recovery abilities, you should all recover normally.”

“These other healers, who are they?”

Batman looked at the others. “You'll meet them downstairs in the medical bay. Just remember, after this is over, we will be sending you home to your own time. It's going to be up to you how you deal with what you learn here.”

Oliver grabbed Chloe's hand and allowed the Justice League team members to lead them down a series of bright white hallways and an tense elevator ride to the enormous room they called the medical bay. 

There were modern looking hospital beds lining the walls as well as banks upon banks of unfamiliar looking medical equipment and monitors. Oliver felt a tightening in his stomach at the thought of Chloe in one of those beds, hooked up to one of those monitors. He turned to her and whispered “Are you sure about this?”

She nodded, even though he could see the fear in her eyes. “I'm sure.” She squeezed his hand. “You'll stay with me?” she whispered back. “I'll fight them all if they try to move me,” he said with a grin.

She gave a shaky smile and leaned against him. He looked at the others expectantly, “So what now?”

Batman stepped closer. And unexpectedly pushed back his mask, revealing the older face of Bruce Wayne. He's dark hair was streaked with gray and there were faint lines around his eyes but Oliver recognized him.

“Bruce!!! What---- All this time? You've been Batman?”

“With what I'm about to ask of you, Oliver, I owed you the truth about who I am. At some point in your future, you're going to come to Gotham to ask me to join the League and I'm going to be a jackass about it. More than a jackass. I can't go back and change that but I can say that I'm sorry...and that you were right. I do need the Justice League.”

Oliver was speechless. His old schoolmate, sometime business partner, and sometime business rival was Batman, was going to be Batman? This was getting stranger and stranger.

“OK, fine, apology accepted, I guess. What did you mean, what you're about to ask me to do?”

“I'm going to ask you to do nothing. To let this happen. It's all going to be OK. You need to trust us.” He turned to Victor, “Have Dinah bring them in.”

He and Chloe turned towards the door to see Dinah leading two figures into the room. Two younger people, probably a few years younger than he and Chloe. They were blond and fairly tall with athletic builds. One was male and the other female. As they drew closer, he could see that the boy, no young man, had longish hair, held back with a band in a ponytail. The girl had long blond hair as well, caught in one of those complicated braid things. They looked enough alike to be related to each other, maybe even siblings. They were watching he and Chloe intently, with wide greenish eyes, that were rimmed with red, as if they'd been crying.

“These are our other healers.” Bruce said, “This is Connor and this is Moira.”

“Oh my God!” Chloe whispered after a long moment, covering her mouth with her hands. 

Oliver was confused for a beat until he looked from the young healers to Chloe and he knew. 

“Oh God.” 

He felt Chloe slipping down and he tightened his grip on her waist. “I've got you! Victor!” he commanded. “Get her a chair!”

Victor instantly produced a chair and helped him sink Chloe's almost limp body into it. Dinah brought her cup of water, which she gulped with shaking hands. Oliver knelt in front of the chair with his forehead pressed to hers and his hands on hers until her breathing slowed.

Behind him, he could hear the others murmuring things to one another and some sharp words but he ignored them and focused on Chloe.

“You OK?” asked.

She nodded. 

“Can you stand?” 

She nodded again and let him pull her to her feet. He kept a firm grip on her and then nodded to the kids that it was OK for them to come forward.

Kids.  _Their_ kids. 

Everything that had been said since they arrived. All the coded language and unfinished sentences suddenly made sense. He and Chloe had  _children_ together. Two children.

Connor and Moira went to Chloe first, looking at her in fascination.

“You hardly look older than us.” Moira said, then she looked at Oliver and shook her head in disbelief.

“How old are you?” Chloe asked, reaching out to touch the younger girl's hair.

“Moira--” Victor said in warning. 

Moira looked guilty. “Sorry, I can't tell you that. Uncle Victor's scared we'll screw up things up with time if you know.”

Chloe shot Victor an annoyed look, which he shrugged off. Oliver studied Connor, trying to guess his age. His  _son_. A son that was barely younger than he was!

“Which one of you is older?” he asked.

Connor grinned proudly. ”I am,” and Moira shot him a suspiciously familiar eye roll. “Only by three minutes and I still maintain that the doctor made a mistake.”

“Three minutes?” Chloe repeated hoarsely. “You're twins?”

They both nodded in unison and Oliver felt a knot of true fear grow in his stomach. Twins. With a mixture of Green Arrow and Watchtower DNA.

He felt Chloe sway again and he pulled her closer to steady her. He followed Connor's gaze to the left hand he had wrapped around her waist. 

“Hey, you guys aren't married?” Connor exclaimed.

Victor groaned. “Connor!”

Connor smiled guiltily. “Uh....whoops?”

Something else to add to the mix. Oliver shook his head. “We're not.”

Moira turned to Bruce. “Uncle Bruce, what year did you get them from?”

“2010.”

“Oh, but I thought---”

“That's  _enough_ , Moira.” Victor said with an intense look. 

The fog in Oliver's head began to clear and he realized what Bruce had been asking him to do. He fixed his gaze on his black-clad friend.

“No, the answer is no, Bruce. I won't let this happen.”

“Oliver, there's no other way.”

“They're kids! They're  _our_ kids and I say it's too dangerous. I won't allow it. Find another way.”

“We all know the risks coming in, including them.” Bruce shot back.

Oliver dropped his arm from Chloe's waist and stepped in front of Bruce. “And if it was  _your_ family? What would you say then?”

Bruce was silent.

“That's what I thought.” He turned to see Connor looking at him intently. It was disconcerting because he had Chloe's eyes. 

“Dad---”

Inexplicably, Oliver found himself responding automatically. “What?”

“We're old enough to decide this for ourselves. We wouldn't be here if we weren't. You were adamant that we not join the League until we were adults and we are. You can't stop us from doing this.”

Moira stepped forward with watery eyes. “Plus, if we don't help Mom save Uncle Clark, there's a chance that we won't ever see you guys, or at least our versions of you guys, again.”

Chloe reached out and caught the tear on Moira's cheek with her thumb. “What do you mean?”

“If Uncle Clark dies, the League will have to leave here and split up to defend itself. It will be impossible to mount a mission to find where President Luthor is holding our Mom and Dad. This is the only way we get our parents back.”

Oliver chest tightened at the emotion in the girl's voice. She was telling the truth. 

Oliver rubbed his face with his hands and looked from Chloe to Connor and Moira. He felt like his heart was being pulled out of his body. 

He turned to Bruce. “OK, but this better work or I'm going to follow your ass through time and break every bone in your body every week and twice in Sundays.”

Bruce nodded. “It will work.”

Moira and Connor snickered and Chloe turned to them. “What's so funny?”

“Dad, our Dad, threatens Uncle Bruce a LOT.” Connor said with a grin.

“All the time,” added Moira. 

*****  
Chloe handed a cup of water to Oliver as he sat in one of the chairs in the Medical Bay. They could feel the eyes of the other people in the room on them but they seemed to understand that Oliver and Chloe needed a minute alone to process everything that had happened.

“Drink this.”

“If ever I needed something stronger....”

“I wouldn't stop you.” she muttered.

“Yes, you would.”

“You're right. I would.”

He squeezed her hand with his and he drained the cup. “We're going to have a lot to talk about when we get back to our time.”

“I know.”

“Does any of this scare you?” he asked warily.

Chloe thought about it. “Actually no, it's weird but it doesn't scare me as much as I thought it would. You?”

“Me either. Weird. Well, scratch that,  _those_  two scare me,” he said, nodding towards Connor and Moira, who were talking to Victor and AC. “Can you imagine how much trouble two kids with our DNA will get into?”

Chloe thought about it. “OK,now I am scared. Ollie, there are  _two_ of them.”

“That's what I'm saying!”

The doors to the medical bay burst open and a man and and woman rushed in, carrying a large red cloaked figure.

The woman had long dark hair and wore a blue jacket over a bright red shirt, black pants,and had some kind of gold rope tied at her waist. Chloe recognized the man as a strangely unchanged J'onn. They laid the large figure on the one of the beds. His head fell to the side and Chloe could make out Clark's slightly older features. Chloe walked up beside the woman, who was adjusting the cloak to cover more of Clark's body. She looked up at once when Chloe reached her and stepped back in surprise. 

“Chloe! Oh, of course, Bruce said you were here.”

Chloe studied her. “You must be...Diana?”

“Yes, we haven't met yet but...yes, I'm Diana.”

“How is he?” she asked, nodding at Clark.

“Still alive but barely. I haven't ever seen him with Kryptonite poisoning this bad. Luthor hit him with something very powerful. Will you help him?”

“Of course.” She looked over her shoulder at Moira and Connor and they came without her needing to say a word. Oliver appeared at her side, catching her shoulders to turn her around to face him. He gave her a crushing hug. “I'll be here.” he told her. “I know you will. I'll come back to you as soon as I can. Wait for me,” she whispered into his neck. 

She she stepped back and found herself surrounded by Connor and Moira. She took one of each of their hands in hers. “Do you guys know what to do?” They nodded.

“I'm stronger than the both of you, so follow my lead. If you feel me starting to get weak, don't get scared. Sometimes things ebb and flow with really serious injuries. Just hang in there and don't lose hope. Think about something you really care about and you'll stay strong, I promise.”

They nodded again and exchanged glances, seeming to have some kind of conversation in that one look.

Batman, his mask back in place, spoke to them from his position on the other side of Clark's bed. “Are you all ready?”

“Ready.” Chloe replied.

“Ready.” the twins replied in unison.

The three of them laid their hands on Clark's body. Chloe felt the warmth from her hands start to pulse and seep out of her body. She felt warmth from Connor and Moira as well and she briefly opened her eyes to see the bright light from their bodies filling the room.

The pain came quickly, ripping through her, and the room began to get dark. She held on, knowing that every bit of pain she took, would be less for Connor and Moira to take.

Eventually the pull of the darkness was too strong and she was tired, too tired to hold on any more....

 **End Chapter.**


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three  
**  
 _2033...Justice League Headquarters...Lower Lunar Orbit...  
_  
Oliver caught Chloe's body before she fell and carried her to a nearby bed, laying her out as if she were made of glass. He looked up briefly to see AC carrying Moira to the bed next to her and Bart and Victor carrying Connor to the one on the other side. Dinah brought in blankets to cover them all. No one spoke for a long time. The machines in the room hummed along uselessly. 

Sometime later, Oliver could not be sure how long, Clark's groan broke the silence, and he stirred under the red cape. Diana was at his side in a moment, helping him sit up.

“Kal? How do you feel?” she asked.

“Um...OK, I guess. What did he hit me with?”

“Concentrated Kryptonite. He must have made a stronger version.”

“How did I---” His eyes caught Oliver's from across the room and he stopped talking. He slid off the bed and walked towards where Oliver sat at Chloe's bedside, his hand holding hers. 

“Oliver.” Clark looked down at Chloe, then at the kids. “Oh God, Oliver...”

“Don't, Clark. Just, don't. Just go do what you're supposed to do here. My family doesn't need your words right now. We just need you to go out there and finish this.”

Clark nodded and took one last look at Chloe and the kids before following Diana and J'onn out the door.

The kids came to after six hours, moments apart. Moira work up first and allowed Oliver to help her sit up. She asked for water and was able to stand on her own after a few minutes. 

Connor came to right after, and Moira helped him stand before Oliver could reach them. 

“This is a good sign, right?” he said to Oliver who had returned to his place at Chloe's side. “That Moira and I are up. Mom should be up and around soon too?”

Oliver didn't respond but Moira elbowed him. “She took twice as much as we did, Con.” 

Another hour passed during which Oliver remembered refusing Victor's offer of food and/or drink. He couldn't be sure. He just knew he didn't need it. He wouldn't need anything until Chloe woke up.

The team members were in and out of the medical bay, talking. Offering things. Watching. Oliver gave up trying to respond politely to their inquiries after a while. He'd apologize later.

The kids stayed the whole time. They didn't ask questions. They talked quietly to each other and waited, sitting side by side on one of the beds. He had to stop thinking of them as kids. They were twenty or twenty-one by his best guess. Still, they were kids.

Another hour passed and Oliver grew aware of low humming –no, singing, coming from the bed behind him.

He turned to look at Connor and Moira, They were leaning against each other, fingers tapping out a beat on their knees and their mouths were moving. They were obviously singing something.

“What are you guys singing?” he asked.

Moira turned pink. “Sorry, we can stop.”

“No, I'm not asking you to stop...” He paused. “Do I, um, does your Dad ask you to stop when you're singing?” He really hoped the older version of himself wasn't a cranky bastard.

She shook her head. “No, he says it's better than listening to us argue.”

Oliver was relieved. “So what are you singing?”

“It's a long story.” Connor answered.

Oliver squeezed Chloe's limp hand. “I've got the time. Try me.”

“Well, when we were six, Mo and I had this music teacher who was totally into the whole us being twins thing and coming up with these duets for us to perform. So she got it in her head that it would be really cute for us to sing that old Beatles song “Two of Us” for the school music show. So she made us practice and practice...”

Moira interrupted. “Two months, every day. I thought we were going to go crazy with this song in our heads.”

Oliver smiled. “So what happened? Did you sing it for the show?”

“Oh yeah, we totally killed it. Standing ovation all the way... Almost made up for the stupid costumes she made us wear.” Connor gave a shudder at the memory. “Believe me, you don't want to know.”

Moira rolled her eyes. “It's not like he's not going to see them for himself. Oh and Mom...you should have seen her. She cried so hard. Total puddle of Mom-goo. So embarrassing.”

Oliver had no trouble imagining Chloe crying at something like that.

“So that's the song you were singing? You still remember it after all these years?”

Their matching smiles suddenly faded.

“Well...” Connor began. “That's not why we remember it so well.”

Oliver looked from one twin to the other. “What?”

“It's just that...about a month after the show, you got hurt on a mission and since Mom was--”

Moira nudged his leg sharply with hers and shook her head, cutting him off, “Remember what Uncle Victor said.”

Connor looked startled, then nodded. “Right...well, you got hurt and Mom couldn't heal you so you had to go to the hospital and you were in there for a while. They never told us the details but it seemed like you were pretty bad off. When Mom took us to see you, you were asleep or unconscious or something and she said... she said that if we sang you the song, you would hear it and feel better. So we did and she said it worked. You woke up the next day.”

The thought of these two six-year-olds waiting anxiously by his hospital bed was making Oliver's throat constrict. What kind of father put his children through that?

Moira and Connor exchanged a look. “And ever since then, when we were feeling bad or upset about something, we've sorta sang it with each other to feel better. It's kind of a twin thing now. Not many people understand. We're probably too old for it...but it helps.” Moira finished. 

Oliver stood and walked to where they twins sat on the bed. “I'm sorry.”

“For what?”

“For putting you guys through that. There must have been a lot of times when you were growing up when I wasn't around or when I was hurt because I was off doing...this. I shouldn't have done that to you.” Even if it wasn't  _him_ , it still was. 

Moira reached for his hand, hesitated, then closed her fingers around it.

“Dad, you get like this every time something bad happens and Mom has to talk you down from it. I'm just going to say what she does. What you guys do, it's really no different than what people who are cops, firefighters, or in the military do and get way less credit for it---”

“Except the JL wears flashier uniforms.” Connor interjected and off Moira's glare added, “What? That's what she says!”

“And those people have kids. They get through it and so do we. We're fine. We're not mad at you for getting hurt or not being around. You were around, and growing up, we had the coolest extended family ever. I mean, none of our school friends could say that they get to play Clue with Batman every Thanksgiving.”

“Or have Aquaman teach them how to swim.” Connor added. “Or have Uncle Bart race them to Italy for pizza...”

“OK, I get it,” Oliver held up his hand.”Is that what your Mom says to me when I get like this?” 

“Pretty much, although she says it louder if you're really being bad about it.”

That made him smile for a moment before turning back to Chloe's small, pale form on the bed.

“You guys think you could sing that song for her now?”

“You think she can hear us?” Moira asked.

“It's worth a try.” Oliver returned to his spot beside Chloe and closed his hand around hers. “She's not your Mom in the way you remember her but I think she'd like it.”

“OK, we'll start with her favorite part...”

 _Two of us sending postcards  
writing letters on my wall  
You and me burning matches  
lifting latches on our way back home  
We're on our way back home  
We're on our way home  
We're going home_

You and I have memories  
longer that that road  
that stretches out ahead

Two of us wearing raincoats  
standing solo in the sun  
You and me chasing paper  
getting nowhere on our way back home  
 _We're on our way back home  
We're on our way home  
We're going home_

You and I have memories  
longer that that road  
that stretches out ahead

Oliver Queen didn't know much about kids but he figured that something must have gone right in the last twenty years that he and Chloe had the kind of kids who would sing to their mother when she was sick and not be embarrassed about it.

He sighed and squeezed Chloe's cold hand once more.

“Dad? Are you OK?” Moira asked.

“I will be.”

*****  
When Chloe opened her eyes some time later, she wasn't quite sure where she was. The memories were jumbled in her head and she couldn't be sure what was real. Had she dreamed everything about being in the future with Oliver, meeting their children, and healing Clark? She looked around the bright white room and looked down to see the top of Oliver's blond head at her side.

She swallowed, and whispered his name but her throat was too dry for the sound to be very strong. “Ollie?”

No response. Then she realized that he was holding her hand so she squeezed his and repeated, “Ollie.”

He jerked awake and sat up, “Chlo? Chloe.” Slightly wild brown eyes settled on hers and his weary face broke into a smile. “You're awake. Guys, she's awake.” he added more loudly. 

There was shuffling behind Oliver and Connor and Moira appeared on either side of him, both looking tired but happy. 

“Mom, do you need anything?” Connor asked.

Mom. It was so strange to be called by this, let alone by this tall young man. Even stranger to answer it. “Water, please.”

He disappeared to go get it and Oliver leaned over to kiss her forehead. When he pulled back, she took note of how tired he looked. “How long was I out?”

“About 10 hours,” Moira replied. “How do you feel?”

“Like I've been out of it for 10 hours.” Chloe quipped and allowed Moira to help her sit up.

Connor returned with a cup of water and handed it to her. While she drank, Victor, Dinah, and AC returned to the room. 

“Clark and Diana just checked in,” AC told them. “They're tracking Luthor now, he fled the White House when he realized that Clark was still alive. The Senate's moving to impeach him so he won't have any more control over the military. Looks like we won't have to abandon the station after all.”

Moira stood and faced them expectantly.” And? Any news on Mom and Dad?”

“Diana persuaded one of Luthor's agents to give up a list of potential holding sites. We sent Bart down to run through them. He'll find them.” 

Victor turned to Chloe and Oliver. “Tower, how are you feeling?”

“Better.” Something is Victor's demeanor was anxious, though. “Why? What's the matter?”

“It's just, you guys have been here for almost twenty hours already. We're going to need to send you back soon otherwise, you're going to miss your check-in with us in your time and our younger selves will think something's up.”

Chloe turned to Oliver, “You think you're ready to stand?” he asked her.

“Yeah, if you help me.”

Victor looked contrite. “We're really sorry to have to kick you guys back so quickly, especially after everything you did. I wish there was a way we could thank you.”

Oliver pulled Chloe to her feet and wrapped his arms around her to steady her. “How about telling us who wins the 2011 Superbowl?” Oliver offered. Chloe poked him in the stomach. “Ow.”

“Ignore him, Victor. You don't have to thank us. Just...” she nodded over to Connor and Moira. “If Bart doesn't find us...”

Victor nodded. “You don't need to worry about that. You and Ollie put that in writing the week after they were born. We were honored that you put that much faith in us.”

“I know they said they were adults but they still need someone to look out for them,” Oliver said. 

“They're adults but—-” AC began but Victor glared at him. “You're right, we'll look out for them.”

“Come on. Let's get you guys to the Control Room so Batman can bring you back.”

Moments later, Chloe was taking a long last look around the Control Room, trying to commit it to memory. Someday it would be like a second home to her. Victor even showed her the workstation she used, complete with faint coffee stains on the pure white desk. He also showed them their chairs at the long table that the League used for meetings. Their's were side by side. She asked for more information about their future lives, where they lived when they were on Earth, how long they had been married...but Victor refused.

Batman entered the Control Room, followed by J'onn. “J'onn has an idea that he wants you to hear.”

“Before we send you back to your time, I wanted to offer you the option of not having to deal with what you've learned here. It's been a lot to take in and if you feel it's too much...I can remove your memories. It won't harm you in anyway and I won't alter any of your other memories. Only the last twenty hours you've spent here.”

J'onn was offering them the chance to...forget?

Victor turned to them. “It might be for the best, guys. With all you've learned, it's going to be really hard for you guys to avoid changing something in the timeline when you get back."

“You can erase everything we've learned?” Oliver asked, looking around the room.

“Everything you've heard and seen in the last twenty hours.” J'onn replied. 

“So there'll be a hole in our memories when we get back? We'll just be missing twenty hours?”

“You'll have to deal with that. I can't create false memories to replace what I remove.”

Chloe tugged on Oliver's arm so he would face her. “What do you want to do?”

Oliver eyes shifted from hers to sweep the room, the the faces that had grown familiar to them over the past twenty hours. To two particular faces.

When his eyes returned to hers, she knew what he was thinking and she agreed. 

“No,” she said, turning back to J'onn. “We don't want to forget anything. Leave our memories as they are.”

J'onn nodded. “I understand.” 

Victor looked doubtful. “Guys? Are you sure about this? This is a lot to take back. In your time, you guys aren't even...”

“We know, Victor.” Chloe replied calmly. “We'll deal with it.” And with a glance at Oliver, she knew that they would. Together. 

Chloe waved Connor and Moira over and they hugged her, one at a time. “You two are amazing. I'm going to miss you so much. Promise me you'll me careful.”

Moira wiped away a tear. “We will. We promise.”

Chloe turned to see Oliver hugging Connor. Oliver pulled back to look to take a look at his son. “The future me is really OK with his hair?” he said, nodding towards Connor's ponytail. 

Connor nodded. “Mom convinced you that it was better than a nose ring.”

Oliver laughed and hugged Moira. “Thanks...for earlier.”

She nodded. “Mom counts on us to keep an eye on you when she can't. It's all part of the job.” 

Chloe made a metal note to ask Oliver about this exchange later. Obviously she had missed something important. 

Batman stepped closer. “It's getting late. We need to get moving.” The kids nodded and stepped back. Chloe took a deep breath but was caught completely off guard when Oliver whirled and punched Batman. The caped man went down hard. 

“Oliver!” Chloe exclaimed. 

“Think about that the next time you want to use one of those energy net things on anyone named Queen.” Oliver said, then extended his arm to help Batman to his feet.

Blood trickled from his lip and he wiped it away with his gloved hand. “I guess I deserved that.” 

He reached into his utility belt. “Ready?” 

Before they could answer, Bart's voice crackled over the comm. _“Impulse to JL Control. I've located Arrow and Watchtower. Only minor injuries. En route back to the teleporters now.”_

Chloe's head whipped around to meet Moira and Connor's. Their relief was evident.

“We're ready,” and she closed her eyes as the bright light enveloped them once again. 

End Chapter.


	5. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four  
**  
 _2010...Watchtower...  
_  
Oliver opened his eyes in time to see Batman disappear. He wasn't be surprised that the other man hadn't said goodbye. He looked down at Chloe, who was still wrapped in his arms from their brief journey.

“We're back,” he said needlessly. 

Chloe nodded up at him. 

“We should probably get ready for our call with the guys.”

She nodded again but didn't let him go. So neither did he.

“We may have a couple of hours. We should probably shower, change...we've been wearing the clothes for two days now. Two days and twenty-three years.” he added with a grin.

Chloe nodded again and Oliver was getting confused and a little bit frustrated. “Are you going to say anything?” he finally exclaimed.

Chloe grinned and used the tie that Oliver had forgotten he was still wearing to pull him down and pressed her lips to his. 

Oliver was too stunned to react for a moment, then he realized that Chloe Sullivan was kissing him and he damn well better make it count. He slid his hand into her hair and pulled her closer. She pulled back slightly to nibble on his lower lip and he used to opportunity to nudge her lips apart with his own to kiss her properly. Chloe groaned and he felt her hands slide up his chest and then fingers were sliding across the sensitive skin of his neck and into his hair. How was it possible that they'd known each other for this long without doing this?

Blindly he reached for a handful of the white lacy fabric of her dress and pulled her body closer to his own. Chloe chose that frustrating moment to pull her lips from his. Breathing heavily, she shot him a mischievous grin. “Well, glad we got that of the way.”

“Was that some kind of experiment?” he asked.

“Sort of...I had to make sure we were compatible.”

“You didn't get enough proof of that on our little trip?” 

“Yeah, but there's nothing like firsthand... _physical_ evidence.”

Her words had an immediate  _physical_ reaction on him and he felt his plan of taking their relationship slowly slipping away. “Never took you for a tease, Sidekick.”

“It's only teasing if there's no intent behind it.” she retorted. “You were right...earlier. When you said we'd be able to handle this. You were right and I was wrong. And I get the feeling that I'm not going to be saying that a lot over the next twenty or so years, you might as well take advantage of it now.”

He didn't need to be asked twice. With a groan, he lifted her up and set her on the table behind them. Not waiting for her to comment, he positioned his body between her legs and dove in for another kiss.

So much for slow. 

Soon their hands were everywhere. His on her bare thigh, pushing the hem of her dress higher and higher. Hers at his waist, tugging at his dress shirt to reach bare skin. His in her hair, then skimming across the bare skin of her neck and shoulders. All the while kissing, the kissing he'd lived without his whole life and clearly never would again.

Gentle then hard, tasting then hungry, simple then deep. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he remembered that her dress had a corset top and, without breaking their kiss, he set about finding a way to untie it. She made no attempt to stop him and instead her nimble hacker fingers were making short work of his tie.

Oliver became vaguely aware of a beeping noise behind them somewhere. At first he ignored it, and focused instead on the knot on Chloe's dress strings but the beeping continued and finally caught Chloe's attention.

“Crap, the comm!” She pushed him away and dove towards the noise. 

She flicked the speaker and mic on her workstation to the “on” position, and Oliver noted that she was careful to keep the camera off.

“Watchtower online.” she said breathlessly, using her free hand to hold her dress together. 

 _“Cyborg online, Tower, we've got a problem.”  
_  
“What's the problem?”

 _“The lab here. They've overhauled their security since we planned this. We did surveillance today and everything's different: access codes, guard shift changes, everything. We're going to need to spend more time gathering intel and regroup.”  
_  
Oliver leaned forward towards the mic. “Arrow online. Cyborg, how long will you need? Does it make sense for you to stay there? Should you guys fly back and plan a new operation from here?”

 _“Negative, Arrow. We can regroup and plan a new operation in the next twenty-four hours. I just need to get into their system and download their new codes and schedules. It'll take me some time but I'm not ready to call it a wash just yet. I can give you guys a call back in about eight hours.”  
_  
“Confirmed, Cyborg. We'll talk then.”

“Cyborg out.”

Oliver sank into Chloe's chair and pulled her onto his lap. She leaned forward to turn off the mic and gave him a shy smile. “So....”

“So...looks like you and I have some time on our hands.”

She shifted on his lap and something jutted into his leg. He reached down between his leg and the side of the chair and extracted Chloe's missing purse.

“Hey, look what I found.”

Chloe reached inside the purse and extracted her cell phone. The screen read four missed calls.

“Aaron?” he asked.

She nodded. “I should probably call him and apologize for standing him up.”

“Are you going to tell him the truth? That you stood him up because you were on an incredible first date with me?”

She grinned and kissed him gently. “Sure I will, I'm sure he's going to love to hear about how we got pulled through time by our superhero friends, were almost killed by the future megalomaniacal President, and met our unborn children.”

“As first dates go, it's pretty hard to beat.”

“What do you plan to do for the second date?” Chloe asked shifting closer in his arms.

Oliver hesitated. What the Hell, might as well go for broke. “I planned on telling you that I love you. Then maybe order some takeout. How does that sound?”

Chloe's eyes went wide for a moment, then she smiled and slid off his lap. She extended her hand. “Sounds remarkably similar to my second date plan. Except I was going to  _show_ you that I love you too. And since the boys are away, we've got some time on our hands and it's just the two of us here...I might show you a lot.”

“I like the way you think, Watchtower.”

*****  
 _2033...Justice League Headquarters...Lower Lunar Orbit...  
_  
Chloe Sullivan-Queen pulled her still-damp shoulder-length blond hair into a loose knot and checked her face for bruises in the mirror over her dresser. 

Thankfully, there weren't any. Her body was sore from sitting with Oliver on the cold concrete floor of their holding cell but that was the extent of the damage. For her. Oliver had gotten into it with two of the guards and was sporting some bruising on his face and arms. Nothing serious and nothing he wasn't used to. They were lucky that Lex had been so preoccupied with killing Clark and launching weapons against the JL station that he hadn't given clear instructions as to what was to be done to the Queens. 

As far as abductions went, this experience was pretty banal. 

It had been several hours since Bart had found them and at least three since they'd arrived back on the station. They'd been reunited with the team and the kids and heard the now-familiar tale of how their younger selves had been brought through time. Of course, she and Oliver knew the story already. Had known it for twenty-three years and never told anyone.

She knotted the sash on her silk robe more securely and pulled a t-shirt out of Oliver's drawer for him to wear when he got out of their bathroom where Connor was tending to his injuries

Moira entered the bedroom carrying a tray containing drinks, sandwiches, and cookies. “Here you go, Mom. Coffee for you, juice for Dad.”

Chloe smiled at her beautiful daughter. “Thank you, honey, but there's really no need to fuss over us. We're fine.”

Moira shrugged and leaned against the dresser. 

Chloe took her coffee over to the sofa in the rooms small sitting area and sank into the cushions. Banal abduction or not, sitting on cold concrete for two days at her age was not a good idea. 

“You called your sister?” she asked Moira. 

Moira nodded, not bothering to look up from the small collection of pictures on the dresser that she was studying. The first and largest was Chloe and Oliver''s wedding picture. In a slightly smaller frame was a photo of Chloe and Oliver in hospital garb holding two tiny infants. The third frame held a photo of Oliver and Chloe holding a third baby, taken almost seven years after the twins were born. Chloe had taken one look at the infant's dark eyes and dirty blond hair and named her Olivia before her husband could protest. 

“She already knew you guys were OK, though.” Moira said absently.

Chloe stilled. “How?” she asked and Moira looked guilty, as if she'd given away something she shouldn't have. “Moira,  _how_  did Olivia know that we were OK?”

“Ummm...she sorta spoofed your access codes and has been monitoring the JL transmissions herself,” Moira said in a rush.

“Including the secure ones?”

“ _Especially_ the secure ones.”

“Those are quantum encrypted!”

“Yeah, she's pretty proud of that.”

Chloe sighed. Her youngest would be the death of her. “I''m going to need to call her...” she looked at the clock near the bed. “Tomorrow. It's hard enough for her to sleep in the dorms without us calling in the middle of the night. And this week is midterms.”

Olivia had been one of several real surprises over the years but a happy, welcome one. 

There had been sadder ones as well: Lois' death, Clark's intense grief, some tragic League-related disasters. Many things that had been too complicated to explain during their brief visit to the future. For better and for worse, she and Oliver had lived them out in real time.

The bathroom door opened and Oliver and Connor stepped out, both looking annoyed. Oliver picked up the shirt Chloe had laid out for him and tugged it over his damp head. The once blond hear was now more silver, sparking any number of “silver fox” references in the tabloid press, all of which Chloe thoroughly enjoyed teasing him about. 

Oliver kissed Moira on the top of her head, picked up the juice she'd left out for him, and settled in the sofa next to Chloe. “We're going to need to get more antiseptic from the medical bay. Your son just used an entire bottle on a cut a half inch long.” Oliver pointed to the butterfly bandage under his left eye.

“I did not. Mom, he's exaggerating,” Connor protested.

“Right, because he  _never_ does that.” Chloe quipped to Connor. To Oliver she added. “Last I checked, he was your son, too.”

“If you would just let one of us heal your cuts, you wouldn't need the antiseptic,” Connor pointed out. 

“I don't need anyone to heal it.” Oliver grumbled. “Your mother's exhausted. She shouldn't be healing anyone.”

“One of us can do it,” Connor said.

“After you were both unconscious for six hours after healing Uncle Clark? I don't think so. Just because I wasn't here for that, doesn't mean I wasn't here for that,” Oliver said. When Chloe shot him an amused glance, he added. “That made sense in my head.”

He took a gulp of his juice, then said in resignation when the three sets of green eyes didn't waver from him, “Fine, if they're still bad in the morning, I'll let one of you fix them up before the League meeting. Happy?”

“Ecstatic,” said Connor and stole a cookie from the tray Moira had brought in.

Oliver wrapped his free arm around Chloe and she leaned her head against his chest. “Olivia?” he asked her.

“She's fine. Other than the fact that she broke the encryption on the JL transmissions. Again. I need to talk to her in the morning.”

“She had a good reason this time, she was concerned about us.” Oliver said and Chloe rolled her eyes. Their youngest had him wrapped around her finger. 

“Hey, Mom. Did you know that the top part of your wedding dress looks a lot like the dress the younger you was wearing today?” Moira observed, studying the large photo. “Except that your wedding dress is all satiny and everything, it's almost exactly the same.”

Chloe blushed and pretended to be fascinated by her coffee. “Really?”

Oliver grinned at her,“You don't say.” 

Neither of them would acknowledge that her wedding dress had been designed with the same lace-up corset design of her sundress specifically because of how Oliver had enjoyed “unwrapping” her on their infamous second date. There were some things their children just didn't need to know.

Moira grabbed a cookie from the tray and tugged on her brother's sleeve. “C'mon, let's go. Mom and Dad want to sleep.”

“It's early.” Connor protested, around a mouthful of cookie.

“Yeah but they were kidnapped. Plus they're old.”

Chloe glared at her. “Watch it, you may be too old for an allowance but I'm still in charge of your weapons budget.”

“Kidding!" Moira hedged while her brother laughed at her. 'Night, Mom. 'Night Dad.”

“Wait.” Oliver called out. When the twins stopped, he said. “You two did good today. We'really proud of you.”

They both grinned like eight-year olds receiving their first medals in archery before closing the bedroom door behind them.

Chloe sighed and enjoyed the silence for a moment. Oliver stroked her back through the silk of her robe.

“It's weird, for twenty-three years, we've both known that this day was coming. And now it's over... And tomorrow is truly a mystery.” she mused.

“Does that scare you?”

“No, not really. As long as you and the kids are with me, I'm not scared.”

“Me either.” A few minutes later, she looked up at him and he was smiling, a very familiar smile. “What are you thinking about?” she asked.

“Our second date.” And his fingers slid into her hair the way they had for the past twenty years. The way she never got tired of. “What about our second date?”

“Having the Clocktower to ourselves...just the two of us...” he leaned in and began kissing his way down her neck and Chloe let her eyes slide closed...

The bedroom door burst open and Connor breezed in. “Mom, did I leave my jacket ---? Oh there it is.” He crossed the room in two long strides to retrieve the item, apparently oblivious to his parents.

Oliver sighed and raised his head. “Connor! What exactly do you have against knocking?”

“Sorry! I forgot my jacket. I'm going...” and he disappeared through the door again, shutting it behind them.

With a sigh, Chloe stood and pulled her husband to his feet. “Come on, let's go to bed. We've got an early meeting tomorrow...”

“But---”

“And I'm sure I've got a nightgown in here that I'll need help getting out of.” she added with a flirty smile.

“Ah...now that's more like it.”

“Oh and Oliver? Lock the door.”

 **The End.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thanks to everyone who has written such great time travel and/or family fics featuring Connor and other Queen kids which inspired me to write this. This fic spawned (ha!) a series. Look for the rest to be posted soon.


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